[Tweeters] robin extravaganza

[Dennis Paulson via Tweeters]

Hello tweets,

We don’t see robins in our yard very often, occasionally taking a drink or a bath, but when I went out to get the mail this morning they were all over the sky above me, perched high in leafless trees and then dropping down to a big rowan/mountain ash tree in the neighbor’s yard. The tree was covered with big red berries, and the robins were gulping them down as fast as they could. At least 20 birds were involved, and what was especially interesting to me was the fact that more kept flying overhead, coming from some distance. Not in a tight flock, but very spread out. Even more interesting, some of them just kept flying, not landing with the fruit-eating birds. Were they full already?

Their flocking in winter seems to be largely about finding fruit-bearing trees. But how do they find them? Do they fly over the landscape until they spot the colors of fruits below them? Do they recognize fruit-bearing plants trees and shrubs by their shape or leaves? Do they communicate about them to others by specific calls or behavior?

Dennis Paulson
Maple Leaf, Seattle